Sometimes it Rains is a podcast series that examines the intersection between sports and social justice, told one story, one season at a time.
Hosted by Mat Hostetler
A SIR Special: The Complicated Legacy of Jim Brown
Many have called Jim Brown the greatest running back of all time. Though he played in the NFL more than 60 years ago, his numbers are incredible even by today’s standards. In addition to his accomplishments on the gridiron, he was also an accomplished actor and an important leader in the fight for Civil Rights. He was a man made for the moment in which he lived. But there was also a disturbing history of violence that, with his recent passing, has led some to question how, and to what degree, he should celebrated.
We take a look at all of that on this special episode of Sometimes it Rains.
The Story of Willie Mays Aikens and Mandatory Minimums
A power hitter and superstar for the Kansas City Royals in the early 1980’s, Aiken’s career was derailed by a debilitating addiction to drugs. Arrested at a time when the U.S. had instituted harsh mandatory minimum sentences as a weapon in the on-going war on drugs, a policy that inequitably targeted people of color, Willie found himself sentenced, on a non-violent drug conviction, to twenty years in federal prison.
Sometimes it Rains uses Willie’s personal journey to explore the history of America’s war on drugs and mass incarceration, and the impact those policies have had on communities of color.
At its heart, this story is about one man’s journey from baseball stardom, to rock bottom, and finally… redemption.
Season I:
Season II:
What’s in a Name? The Story of the Kansas City Chiefs and the Native American Mascot Controversy
The Kansas City Chiefs are one of the few North American scholastic or professional sports organizations remaining with a mascot derived from Native American heritage. Season 2 of Sometimes it Rains chronicles the riches, to rags, and back to riches story of the Chiefs amidst the backdrop of an all too little know history of the Native American people in the United States that led to the intertwining of sports mascots, culture and politics.